Books
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Books, Real Estate
Standard Of Review: 'Foreclosure' Manages To Make Mortgages Interesting
Attorney S.D. Thames attempts a Herculean task: make real estate (such as mortgages, escrow, and yes, foreclosure) actually interesting. -
Non-Sequiturs
Non-Sequiturs: 09.28.15
* Marriage equality, religious freedom, voting rights, campaign finance reform, racial justice… one civil rights issue outweighs them all: the composition of the Supreme Court. [Talking Points Memo]
* Reminder to all the fresh lil’ 1Ls out there: you just might find love. [Go Knoxville]
* I’m glad someone is fact-checking How To Get Away With Murder; watching that show was getting exhausting. [Refinery 29]
* How quickly what is considered “offensive” changes. [What About Paris?]
* The latest review of Supreme Ambitions (affiliate link), by Katelyn Kye of Major, Lindsey & Africa (note: some spoilers). [In Brief]
* Try not to let the misery of the courtroom get you down. [Katz Justice]
* Taking a look at the process of adopting legal tech. [Law Technology Today]
* A tribute to how Doug Kendall changed the way liberals talk about the constitution. The founder of the Constitutional Accountability Center, Kendall passed away this weekend. [Think Progress]
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Generative AI In Legal Work — What’s Fact And What’s Fiction?
Zach Warren from the Thomson Reuters Institute discusses the potential and the pitfalls. -
Books
Standard Of Review: 'Dead Soon Enough' Is A Mixture Of Mayer Brown And A Millennial Detective
Dead Soon Enough is an enjoyable read for fans of mystery, neo-noir, or even millennials, according to culture columnist Harry Graff.
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Books
Standard Of Review: I Pledge Only Partial Allegiance To Kermit Roosevelt's Novel 'Allegiance'
Allegiance is surely an enjoyable read for history buffs and those interested in the events leading up to the Korematsu and Endo decisions. -
Biglaw, Books
Standard Of Review: BIGLAW Will Give Readers Anxiety (In A Good Way)
This book will make for a good read if you can manage to sneak out of the office. -
Morning Docket
Morning Docket: 08.27.15
* Should town clerks opposed to gay marriage be required to issue licenses to all couples? The Sixth Circuit says…. [How Appealing]
* John H. Ray III, the African American ex-associate at Ropes & Gray who claimed the elite firm discriminated against him, loses in court again, this time before the First Circuit. [National Law Journal]
* Vester Lee Flanagan aka Bryce Williams, the Virginia television broadcaster who killed two colleagues on-air before killing himself, was also no stranger to the legal system: he filed multiple lawsuits alleging racial discrimination. [New York Times]
* Why are in-house lawyers more likely than their non-attorney corporate colleagues to fall for phishing emails? [ABA Journal]
* Dewey know when the prosecution will rest in this seemingly endless trial? Probably today. [Wall Street Journal]
* State judges get nasty with each other in Oregon. [Oregonian]
* Federal judges around the country are advocating for a second look at how defendants get sentenced. [New York Times]
* The Dilly in Philly: Paul Clement v. Ted Olson. [Am Law Litigation Daily]
* A T14 law graduate turned “traveling artist” gets charged with criminal sexual assault in Chicago. [Chicago Tribune]
* Speaking of sexual assault laws, Emily Bazelon explains how the St. Paul’s Rape Case shows why these laws must change. [New York Times]
* Update: convicted Colorado movie theater shooter James Holmes didn’t get just a life sentence, but 12 life sentences — plus 3,318 years on top of that. [CNN]
* Linda Hirshman, author of the forthcoming book Sisters in Law: How Sandra Day O’Connor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg Went to the Supreme Court and Changed the World (affiliate link), explains how Justices O’Connor, Ginsburg, and Sotomayor brought wisdom to SCOTUS (but where’s the love for Justice Kagan?). [Slate via How Appealing]
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Non-Sequiturs
Non-Sequiturs: 08.24.15
* I get that litigation is expensive, but I promise, Tom Brady doesn’t need donations for his Deflategate legal bills. Especially not when they’re solicited in an obituary. [Deadspin]
* Protip: Don’t ask a female attorney if she is going through menopause, unless you like sanctions. [Lawyers for the Profession]
* Great time waster: what’s the weirdest law in your home state? [Yahoo!]
* Lat reviews Allegiance (affiliate link), a novel by Kermit Roosevelt featuring a Supreme Court clerk. [Wall Street Journal]
* An all too realistic look at what it is like to be a lawyer — substance abuse, terrible workload, self-loathing and all. [Vice]
* A case study of estate planning as played out in the life of fashion icon Helen Gurley Brown. [New York Times]
* Heads up to Missouri lawmakers — you don’t end sexual harassment by telling interns to dress “modest.” [Think Progress]
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Racism
Is This Racist? State Bar Can't Tell If This Is Racist.
After honoring a story written by a man associated with a hate group, a state bar flies into embarrassing damage control. - Sponsored
AI’s Impact On Law Firms Of Every Size
How solo lawyers, midsize firms, and global large law firms have an opportunity to adjust the way they work. -
Books
An Interview With Howard Franklin, Author Of 'Gideon’s Children'
For those disturbed by recent police brutality, misconduct, and shootings, Gideon's Children may be the perfect end-of-summer read. -
Non-Sequiturs
Non-Sequiturs: 08.13.15
* The legal battle over the AIG bailout rolls into the Federal Circuit. [DealBook / New York Times]
* What does a lawyer say when he gets caught swapping fees for oral sex? Claim sex addiction, of course! [Legal Profession Blog]
* The New Orleans public defender office is a testament to underfunding. [Buzzfeed News]
* Charleston School of Law loses a dean right before school resumes. Yep, nothing wrong here! [South Carolina Lawyers Weekly]
* Neighbors sue 8-year-old girl for being kind to animals (or sues her parents anyway). [KIRO]
* A friend remembers John Ralston Pate. [What About Clients?]
* A counterargument to the suggestion of suspect classification for poverty (final item). [PrawfsBlawg]
* The ABA is diving into the world of legal publishing, riding the success of Supreme Ambitions (affiliate link). [Chicago Tribune]
* A domestic violence defendant got the first name of his judge tattooed on his neck. Paul Clement has similar ink that reads “Nino.” Check out the pic. [North Carolina Lawyers Weekly]
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Morning Docket
Morning Docket: 08.13.15
* “When it’s convenient, we’re alumni; when it’s not convenient, we are not alumni.” Grads of Texas Wesleyan Law — which is now known as Texas A&M Law — are suing because the school won’t grant them new degrees or recognize them as alumni. Harsh, y’all. [Houston Chronicle]
* The ABA Journal wants to know who you think the smartest judge in the U.S. is. Let’s hear it for the wonderful women of the Supreme Court: Justices Sandra Day O’Connor, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor, and Elena Kagan. [ABA Journal]
* Now that same-sex marriage is legal across the country, it only seems logical that bans on adoptions by same-sex couples should be overturned. Mississippi will have Roberta Kaplan of Windsor fame to thank when its ban is struck down. [New York Times]
* Pa. Attorney General Kathleen Kane has claimed innocence with regard to the criminal charges she recently racked up. She blames the entire ordeal on blowback from the state’s “Porngate” scandal. AG Kane has got one hell of a moneyshot. [Philadelphia Inquirer]
* Did you know that there’s such a thing as barbecue law? Further, did you know that a Biglaw attorney who serves as counsel at Norton Rose Fulbright who’s never handled a barbecue case has cornered the market on BBQ law books (affiliate link)? [Legal Times]
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Books, Career Alternatives
alt.legal: Conscious Uncoupling . . . With Your Law Firm
How can you make a successful transition out of law while leaving the door open for a future return, just in case? -
Books
Standard Of Review: You Don't Need A Weatherman To Know The Bomb Maker's Son Is A Solid Legal Thriller
For readers out there who have read The Firm so many times their copies are dog-eared, The Bomb Maker’s Son will make for a fine new read, according to resident book reviewer Harry Graff.
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How Transactional Lawyers Can Better Serve (And Maintain) Their Clients
Law Firms Now Have A Choice In Their Document Comparison Software
AI’s Impact On Law Firms Of Every Size
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Generative AI In Legal Work — What’s Fact And What’s Fiction?
The Business Case For AI At Your Law Firm
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Non-Sequiturs
Non-Sequiturs: 07.28.15
* “Bueller… Bueller…” Richard Hsu chats with Ben Stein. [Hsu Untied]
* NFL deflates Tom Brady’s hopes of playing a full season. [Redline]
* Can a public defender really handle 700 cases a year? Spoiler alert: No. [Mother Jones]
* About a third of the seats on the Court of Federal Claims are vacant, and a solitary Senator aims to keep it that way. Why are Republicans against getting citizens tax refunds? Shouldn’t that be their whole schtick? [Constitutional Accountability Center]
* If you’re around August 11, check out “Many Faces of Mediation: An Alternative to Courtroom Drama” at JAMS HQ in New York. [ABA]
* If you’ve been hankering for a podcast covering the U.S. Tax Court, then hanker no further. [U.S. Tax Court Podcast via iTunes]
* A proposal for expanding the U.S. News Diversity Index. [Iowa Law Review via SSRN]
* The continuing tribute to commenter Partner Emeritus rolls on. This time delving into my favorite Baby Boomer trope: lame excuses for skipping out on Vietnam. [What About Clients?]
* Talmage Boston explains how Atticus Finch is still worthy of respect in a post-Go Set a Watchman (affiliate link) world. [Washington Independent Review of Books]
* Talmage will be moderating a panel at the ABA Annual Meeting featuring Judge Posner, William Landay, and Laura Caldwell. The panel will also include our own David Lat, discussing Supreme Ambitions (affiliate link). [Supreme Ambitions]
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Morning Docket
Morning Docket: 07.27.15
* A jury has ruled that rapper 50 Cent must pay an additional $2 million in punitive damages to a woman whose sex tape he posted online, on top of the $5 million he already owes her. This wanksta better hope the judgment gets discharged in bankruptcy. [Associated Press]
* California is America’s breeding ground for unaccredited law schools, and “[m]ost jurisdictions simply don’t allow [these] kind of law school[s] to exist at all. Period.” Nearly all students (about 9 out of 10) drop out before graduation. How much money is being wasted? [Los Angeles Times]
* Since 2007, the pay gap between the highest- and lowest-paid positions in many specialized fields has widened — but that isn’t the case when it comes to the legal profession. Unfortunately, not as many people are making it rain. [New York Times]
* “[M]aybe legislation should fix this. Not the court.” A San Diego judge has suggested that he’ll likely dismiss a right-to-die lawsuit filed by Christy O’Donnell, a civil rights attorney who’s fighting a battle against lung, brain, spine, rib, and liver cancer. [NBC San Diego]
* You’ve seen reactions to Harper Lee’s portrayal of Atticus Finch as a racist in Go Set A Watchman (affiliate link) from everyone and their mother and their dog, but maybe you haven’t seen reactions from law professors yet, so have a look. [National Law Journal]
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Events, Small Law Firms, Solo Practitioners
Download ATL's New eBook For Small Firms And Solos: Academy For Private Practice
The ATL Academy for Private Practice: Volume 1 -- Getting Started eBook offers insight into meeting the challenges of starting and optimizing your small firm or solo practice. -
Books
Standard Of Review: Go Set Go Set A Watchman On Your Shelf (And Never Read It Again)
Arts columnist Harry Graff don’t really care how Go Set a Watchman was released; he merely cares that it is a subpar novel, one that he probably won't read again. -
Canada, Football
The View From Up North: Meet Tim Green (Lawyer, Novelist, TV Host, ex-NFL Player)
Chase your passions, don't let convention stand in your way, and you might someday have a career like this inspiring lawyer. -
Books, Entertainment Law
An Entertainment Lawyer And A Novelist: An Interview With Robert Rotstein
Meet a successful entertainment lawyer who produces entertainment of his own -- by writing legal thrillers. -
Books, In-House Counsel
The Road Not Taken: Go Set A Watchman
Regardless of your views of Go Set a Watchman, Harper Lee has given those of us who have chosen the legal profession as our career a gift, according to in-house columnist Celeste Harrison Forst.